The finalists for the 21st annual Minnesota Book Awards, announced Saturday night, represent a wide range of Minnesota writers. Publishers as small as a one-man operation in Duluth as well as major New York publishers are represented, as are first-time nominees and past winners.

The finalists -- four each in eight categories -- were chosen by 24 judges from around the state. They are:

Minnesota: "Crossing the Canal: An Illustrated History of Duluth's Aerial Bridge" (X-communication) by Tony Dierckins; "Hard Work and a Good Deal: The Civilian Conservation Corps in Minnesota" by Barbara W. Sommer; "Landscapes of Minnesota: A Geography" by John Fraser Hart and Susy Svatek Ziegler; "Minnesota on the Map: A Historical Atlas" by David A. Lanegran (all published by Minnesota Historical Society Press).

Novel and short story: "Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire" (Coffee House Press) by David Mura; "The Plague of Doves" (HarperCollins) by Louise Erdrich; "Shelter Half" (Holy Cow! Press) by Carol Bly; "The Soul Thief" (Pantheon Books) by Charles Baxter.